


永遠のベクトル ~ Vector Of Eternity.

by Sechzehn



Category: Steins;Gate
Genre: F/M, Fluff, OkaKuri, Okakuri Week 2018, Set In The Steins Gate Worldline
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-12
Updated: 2018-10-12
Packaged: 2019-07-29 23:07:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,682
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16274243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sechzehn/pseuds/Sechzehn
Summary: 7 short stories set in the Steins Gate worldline written for Okakuri Week 2018.





	1. Comfort

**Author's Note:**

> I've been so glad to able to participate to this year's Okakuri Week. I had very little time to write so the results were not particularly brilliant, but before publishing the stories here on AO3 I did some labor limae and I completely rewrote some of the entries. If these seven stories aren't full of mistakes and very tortuous sentences is thanks to **Lunarwolf275** who was so patient to beta all of them.
> 
>  
> 
> "Eien No Vector" is a song sung by Itou Kanako (and the ED of several routes of the RomCom spin-off "Steins;Gate - Darling Of The Loving Vows"). I have trouble trying to figure out what a "vector of eternity" might be, but the lyrics depicted it as something that guides people to love so I found it appropriate as a title of a collection of stories about different moments between two people who are clearly in love.

Snow was falling softly outside the window, dancing down from the milky night sky. The Future Gadget Lab was enveloped in a quiet atmosphere, broken only by the chatting of a talk show of dubious utility on the old T.V.

Nothing was different from any other day in the same old room within the first floor of the Ōyama Building, if he excluded the presence of Makise Kurisu, reading a book on the small sofa as he scrolled through some useless topics on @channel.

Time slowly moved forward with each ticking sound of the clock on the wall.

“Speaking of occult, Makise Shōichi is going to keep a lecture about a supposedly revolutionary topic in Tokyo next month and we can’t help but wonder if…”.

A sudden “thump" reverberated through the room. 

His gaze immediately shifted towards Kurisu, who promptly avoided his somewhat worried look. 

The book was lying, abandoned, on the sofa.

“Assi-"

“I’ve completely forgotten to call back Maho-senpai", she interrupted him with a strained smile, her lips stretched into a pale, thin line. “She mailed me this morning about some minor issues with the latest testing of the Amadeus System, so I’m gonna borrow the roof for a while".

Without conceding even the slightest chance to further pry about her problem, Kurisu quickly got out of the room, without even bothering to grab her coat.

Okabe looked at the door for several moments, wondering what would be the best course of action for this situation. Finally, he opted for sitting down on the sofa with a sigh.

Kurisu needed some time alone to sort her feelings out and he had a hunch that his presence would only be a nuisance to that process. Although a deep feeling bounded them, they hadn’t really given a name to what they were and, despite the fact that he really wanted to know her better in that worldline, his attempts were often quite clumsy. 

His shyness seemed to get the best of him whenever he was around Kurisu and with the risk of Hōōin Kyōma popping up against his intentions, he felt like leaving her alone for a while was a good choice.

Snow went on falling on Akihabara.

Although it was true that the most important things had stayed the same even in Steins Gate worldline, he couldn’t properly say that everything was like it was supposed to be. The bond that united the members of the Future Gadget Lab had remained unchanged, and so did the feelings that he and Kurisu shared, but the worldline shift also brought with itself some painful issues from the past.

The first time he ever saw the brilliant Makise Kurisu cry was after a phone call with her father. Back then she had trusted him enough to talk about her problems, shortening the distance that intercurred between them. He couldn’t have imagined that step after step that distance would have been reduced to zero.  
Still, that happened in another worldline and in that moment the situation was considerably more difficult than it was in the Alpha attractor field: in that world he had created, Makise Shōichi had tried to kill his daughter after stealing her theory and, as much as it was sad to admit, there was no way to change what happened. 

Focused as he had been on himself and on keeping that worldline far from danger, he had never stopped to consider how painful that must have been for her. And yet Kurisu never once mentioned her father, probably keeping all of her feelings on the matter locked away from prying eyes. That very same Kurisu was now all alone on the rooftop of an old building, probably shaking under the chilling air of that snowy day and thinking about how wrong things have gone with father. 

He jumped up from the sofa. 

He really was stupid as she said.

§

“Yes, it’s me. I’ve just located the whereabouts of my assistant, so reinforcements are no longer needed. I’ll keep you updated on eventual developments as soon as the mission is cleared. Yes. El. Psy. Kongroo".

Kurisu turned towards him. White flakes were tangled in her wet chestnut hair and her jacket looked like it was beginning to get damp. Her eyes were a little red. Had she been crying?

“Chuunibyou spotted orz".

Her voice was slightly shaky.

“Now, now, Assistant, you wound me. As the founder of this lab I was very concerned about the wellbeing of a fellow labmem.”

Kurisu crossed her arms on her chest, her small figure trembling ever so slightly. A slight pout formed on her lips.

“Yes, yes, what an honor, Hōōin-san.”

Okabe felt himself smiling. That way of speaking was nostalgic, in its own way. “It’s nothing but the truth. Each of the members of this lab are fundamental for my evil plans to work. We must unite to face the conspiracies of-”

“Look,” Kurisu began with a tired sigh. She looked unbearably sad. “I usually tend to ignore your chuuni antics but now I’m not in the mood for- H-hey, what are you trying to do?!”

He felt his smile softening. Fighting the embarrassment that was already threatening to have its own way, he took a few steps on the snowy floor, his shoes leaving trace of his passage on the white pristine surface.

“C-come here”, he managed to blurt, spreading his arms. His words came out in a white puff of smoke.

Kurisu jolted slightly, a confused look on her face despite the reddening of her cheeks.

“W-what are you…”

As much as they were close, he realized he shouldn't have been privy to the details of Kurisu’s relationship with her father in that worldline. 

“There are several degrees below zero and you’re wearing only that skimpy uniform of yours, Christina”, he corrected himself, lowering his arms. “Since I take you to have no intention of coming back inside the lab any time soon, I was trying, as your superior, to prevent any damage to your health. As to fulfill this purpose I hereby concede you to share, abiding by the laws of physics that regulate the passage of heat, the warmth of my very own body.”

A long moment of silence intercurred. The city was quiet.

Suddenly Kurisu let out a small laugh, her breath condensing in irregular white shapes in the chilly night air. “Geez, sometimes I wonder how you can be such an idiot while keeping a straight face". She stepped forward, closing the distance between them. “I guess I have no choice but to accept your offer. But keep your hands at bay or I’ll seriously turn your neocortex into a flower pot.”

Kurisu’s body was really small and cold in his arms. The thought of her having to face her sadness all alone in this freezing night made his heart clench. 

Silence fell on them. Snow went on dancing above their heads as if to blend them with the rest of the landscape.

“You know. Sometimes I wonder if I could have done something in these years to sort things out with my father.”

Her voice was awfully small in their embrace. Despite the need of holding her even tighter, he maintained his composure, feigning ignorance.

“What are you talking…”

“I know you know”, she cut short, raising her head to meet his gaze.

Her piercing blue eyes seemed to be able to read his thoughts. Kurisu always had that peculiar capacity of understanding when something was on his mind just by looking at him.

He felt his eyes widen.

“You remember?”

“Not really”, Kurisu answered. The smile she gave him was somewhat sad. “It sounds terribly unscientific, but I had a feeling that we had already discussed this topic. And the way you reacted earlier in the lab was the proof I needed.”

Okabe shook his head with a fond smile, almost at a loss for words. “You really are worth of the title of Genius Girl".

Kurisu’s expression suddenly shifted to one of pain as she hid her face against his shoulder. Okabe felt his own body tense. 

“There are times I wish I was like everyone else.” Despite being muffled her voice bore an hint of regret. “I just wanted to make my father proud but I ended up ruining his life. I was so focused on coming up with something that could have helped him with his dream that I didn't realize that, in doing so, I would have done nothing but to shatter it.”

Okabe sighed, abandoning what was left of his restraint and tightening his arms around Kurisu’s small frame. “You have nothing to blame yourself for”, he began. “I don’t know the details, but you were just a child and I can’t imagine you purposely doing something to hurt another person.”

“But even so…”.

“Yes, you wounded his pride. But so what? Didn't you say once that a scientist has to accept the result of his research? Your father was blinded by the rage and the frustration of hitting a dead end after years of trials and failures. And… I know what it feels like.”

Countless images flooded in his mind with the same vividness of a movie playing in front of his eyes. Mayuri being shot. Mayuri being pushed in front of a train. Mayuri falling on the floor with lifeless eyes. He knew very well what was like being on the verge of desperation, fighting helplessly against the will of a god that sneered at each failure. 

A knot formed in his throat and his breath became ragged.

“Okabe! Don’t...”

“I’m… fine”, he interjected, flashing a concerned Kurisu a weak smile. Her thin hands were stroking his back with unexpected gentleness. His breathing slowly evened. Her presence grounded him in reality once again. 

“What I want to say is that not being able to find a solution to something that is vitally important can push a person’s mind to its limits. Don’t misunderstand, I have no intention to justify your father, as his actions were despicable, but I think there’s still hope to settle things with him".

Kurisu’s lips stretched into a wry smile. Her expression looked like the one of a child who was about to cry. “How can there be hope? He tried to kill me, you saw it with your eyes.”

Okabe gently pushed away her body. Suddenly he felt incredibly tired. “Then if we look at things from that perspective I am unworthy of forgiveness far more than your father.”

He still remembered the warmth of her blood on his hands. The feeling of the blade sinking with horrible smoothness in the flesh, her body growing cold with each second that passed.The light abandoning those eyes he used to seek comfort in.

“Stop blaming yourself for what had been an accident!”, Kurisu’s tone was uncharacteristically altered, her expression stern. “You didn't need to ask for forgiveness to begin with. And in regards of the situation with my father I am the one who should apologize. I had just blindly followed my curiosity without considering his feelings, so I wouldn't blame him if he hated me.”

Silence fell again between them. Kurisu shivered, this time far more evidently than before. 

He knew that their conversation was bound to meet a dead end no matter how much they discussed the topic. They were both stubborn and in a clumsy attempt of comforting the other, they just ended up blaming themselves for their own sadness and pain, with the effect of only worsening the already heavy atmosphere.

He looked upwards with a sigh. The snow had stopped and the moon shyly peeked from the clouds that dotted the dark night sea above them. How many times had they watched that very same sky together?

“I’m sorry, I didn’t want to bring up painful mem-"

“Fear not, Kurisu”, he interrupted, a proud smirk on his lips. “For I, Hōōin Kyōma, rise from the ashes of failure just like the phoenix in my name”.

Kurisu’s expression went from concerned to confused to disappointed in a span of a few seconds. That familiar scene managed to get a smile out him. Just like that time in a faraway worldline, he let Hōōin Kyōma partially take the spotlight.

“You should know better. I can’t let down a fellow labmem in the time of need, even more so if it happens to be my beloved assistant”, he said theatrically as he walked towards Kurisu once again. 

“B-beloved-”

“That is why from the height of my boundless intelligence and magnanimity, I hereby declare the beginning of Operation Glitnir! We’ll depart towards Aomori as soon as you’re ready. No resistance from your father shall be able to oppose the power of the will of a Mad Scientist and his assistant.”

He slowly stretched a hand towards Kurisu.

They were still so clumsy and awkward when it came to expressing their feelings but even so they were slowly but surely beginning to understand each other. As she had been to him in countless worldlines, he wanted to become her strength and support her no matter what trial they had to face.

Kurisu shook her head with an exasperated smile. “I’m still wondering why I stick with a weirdo like you".

“You’ve obviously fallen for the unique appeal that only folly possesses”, he answered matter- of-factly.

“Yes, yes, as you say.”

Kurisu’s thin hand tightened around his own and he had to fight the urge to grin. It was nostalgically warm.

“So, shall we go, _Christina_?”

“After you, _Hōōin-san_ ".


	2. Domestic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm very thankful to the S;G 0 anime, since it gave me some precious information about Okabe's mother. Now I totally imagine her as someone who would go full fangirl mode about her son's love life.
> 
> You're not alone, Akemi-san, I'll always fangirl over these two dorks.

How she had ended up in that situation was beyond her. 

The chances of that encounter were so low that she hadn’t even considered the possibility of it happening before its due time. Was it Murphy's Law? Or maybe Steins Gate’s… nevermind.

All that she knew was that everything was just too sudden and too awkward - at least for her - to be a coincidence.

And what was even more absurd was the fact that all had began with a cake. All she had wanted was to Laren how to bake a simple chocolate cake.

“Ask Yuki-san”, Mayuri had advised, “Her sweets are incredible!”.   
Amane Yuki - who, much to her disbelief, had been dating Hashida for a while - had gladly accepted to teach her just to be forced to a last minute withdrawal. Apparently she was asked to replace a teacher at another cooking class, and left her in the hands of “one of her most capable students”.

And then, after “Akemi-san" picked her up from the Ikebukuro station and eagerly introduced herself as one of Yuki’s students, she was suddenly hit by a statement that shattered even the tiniest possibility of getting out “unharmed" from that encounter.

“Rintarō never talks about his girlfriend, so I’m really happy to have the chance to meet you.”

§

And that’s how she ended up baking a cake in the very house of her… boyfriend - she still had trouble using that word - under the patient guidance of his mother.

Much to her relief, Okabe Akemi didn’t pry much about her relationship with her son and amiably conversed with her about trivial things as she showed the steps to make a simple yet tasty dessert.

“...and while the sponge cake is in the oven,you can prepare the filling as I-”

A man's voice grumbled something she couldn't quite grasp from downstairs.

“Oh, coming!” Akemi-san shook her head with an exasperated smile, flashing her an apologetic look. “I’m sorry Kurisu-san, my husband needs a hand with the shop. I won’t be away for long but why don't you try making the filling? Feel free to use the kitchen as you like.”

As the elder woman left her visual field Kurisu finally let out a sigh of relief.

It wasn't like she hadn't wanted to meet Okabe’s parents, she simply didn't feel ready for it. It was just a few months since they had given a name to their relationship and, with her inability to visit Japan more than once or twice a year, they hadn’t been able to make much progress. They even weren't on first name terms, despite Okabe calling her with hers in his rare but pleasantly surprising moments of seriousness.

He was annoying, terribly lacking in social skills and sense of fashion. A chronic case of chuunibyou, he completely lacked the capability of reading the atmosphere.   
And yet, behind that pompous laughter, lied a broken man who would have gladly given his life for the happiness of his loved ones.

“Yes, it’s me. I have finally infiltrated the enemy base. I have met no resistance thus far so I expect a trap to- Kurisu?!”

Kurisu jolted, turning around. The very center of her thoughts and primary cause of that awkward situation, was in front of her, his phone still on his ear and a shocked expression on his familiar face.

“O-Okabe, what are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same, Christina. As much as the Lab is the one and only home of my soul, this place is still my house”, he pointed out, a victorious smirk on his lips.

Kurisu flinched. There was no credible excuse able to explain her presence in this place but telling the truth wasn’t an option either.

“What I am doing is none of your business… “Mad silent test", she retorted before returning to the delicate operation of cutting some chocolate without losing a finger or two.

“Guh! That woman, revealing my most obscure secrets to you…”.

She had to admit that talking to Akemi-san had proven to be quite resourceful as the woman literally loved telling embarrassing anecdotes about her son.

“Well then, if you excuse me, I have a cake to finish, Hōōin-san.”

A long moment of silence occured, broken only by the sound of the knife on the cutting board. 

“That won’t do.”

Kurisu stopped dead in her tracks, turning her head slightly at the seriousness in Okabe’s voice. Had he seen through her intentions? Were all of her efforts pointless? Maybe they really weren't meant to be…

“If you keep cutting the chocolate that way it won't melt uniformly.”

She felt herself blinking for a couple of seconds as both relief and confusion overflowed within her. 

“What are you…”

“I-I’ll show you how to do it. Stay put a-and let me guide you.”

Before she could even process the meaning of the absurd events that were taking place in front of her eyes she felt a pair of warm hands on her own, Okabe’s chest slightly touching her back. 

“Close your left hand into a fist to avoid cutting your fingers as you keep the chocolate bar from moving.”

His voice, tinged of a slight note of embarrassment, sounded awfully close. She felt the tips of her ears burn. 

“Now slightly move the knife up and down to cut the chocolate in tiny pieces of similar dimensions”, Okabe explained gently moving her hand with his own. 

_“I guess to an external eye we might look like a couple of newlyweds…”_

Fighting the urge to scream and run, Kurisu wondered when exactly her life had turned into a low category shōjo manga. 

§

“How did you know how to do it?”

Okabe passed a hand through his hair, letting his gaze fall on the now finished cake. “It’s my favorite cake. My mother used to make it all the time when me and Mayuri were kids”, he grumbled. “Of course replicating the very same recipe was a child’s play for a mad scientist of my caliber.”

“Yes, yes, so long and thanks for all the fish.”

Lifting her gaze Kurisu found Okabe staring at her with a somewhat curious look. She looked away, feeling her cheeks heat up.

“W-what.”

“No, it’s just… I was wondering why all of a sudden my assistant had decided to learn how to cook. And in my house, most of all.”

“I’m not your… nevermind”, she retorted before interrupting herself with a sigh. “Yuki-san was supposed to teach me but an inconvenient situation came up and she left me in your mother’s hands. Apparently she is one of her best students.”

A smirk stretched on Okabe’s lips as he closed his eyes. “I see, this is also Steins Gate’s choice.”

“I still can’t believe that Akemi-san is your mother. She is so… normal.”

“Of course. The Organization feels no interest towards a family of normies, it’s the perfect cover for my genius”, he replied with feigned arrogance. “By the way, Christina, who’s that cake for?”

Kurisu jolted, averting her gaze before sighing for the umpteenth time that day.

“I guess there’s no point in hiding it anymore. But really, can’t you guess it by yourself?”

Okabe gave her a dumbfounded look gaining an exasperated one in return.

“Do you even remember what day today is?”

“December 14th, if I’m not mistaken, but what-”  
Kurisu let out a frustrated cry. Sometimes she marveled at how someone as him could be so forgetful. In a way forgetting his own birthday suited him, as he thought so much about the others to forget that his affection was something that each one of his friends reciprocated. And then there was her, who ended up falling for that selfless idiot so hard that he couldn't even begin to imagine.

“Well", she began lifting up the result of their joint effort to offer it to the man in front of her with a pout. “Happy Birthday, R-Rintarō.”

Okabe offered her a shocked look. His jaw dropped as his cheeks blatantly reddened.

“Wha… what did you just say?”

“What, didn't you hear me? It looks like your mind isn’t the only thing that doesn't work properly in you…”, she retorted, her pout deepening with the blush of her face. 

“R-Right now”, he begun as he slowly advanced towards her, the shock still not abandoning his features. “Did you just call me…?”

“D-don’t misunderstand!”, she cut in, her voice raising an octave. “It was a slip of the tongue, I know it sounds weird if I’m the one saying it…”

Her back hit the fridge with a soft “thump", Okabe’s right hand slamming against the flawless plastic surface next to her head.

“What…?”

“You’re really unfair, Kurisu.” The warmth in his gaze betrayed his words as he closed the space between them. “Right now I’m so happy that I might really go insane.”

The cake fell on the floor.

§

“Searching for that one thing, the voice of the laughter of a star…”

Okabe Akemi hummed contentedly as she climbed the stairs that led to her apartment. She was in a really good mood, that day. Rintarō’s girlfriend was a really nice girl, even too good for that degenerate son of hers. Yes, she wasn't very good at cooking, but she was more than willing to help her improve-

“Oh?”

As the kitchen came in sight she was presented with a sight she never thought she would get to see. Standing in front of the fridge, with a chocolate cake lying at their feet, her son and his girlfriend were very occupied in passionately kissing each other.

_“My, my, young people these days.”_

Humming the same song from before, she descended the stairs she came from with a knowing smile on her face, gaining herself a questioning look from her husband. 

“I think I’ll help with the shop a little more~”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess it's wishful thinking imagining Kurisu that calls Okabe by his first name. And I guess even Okabe doing a kabedon falls under that category. But hey, one has the right to dream, right?
> 
> Also. I love "Hoshi No Kanaderu Uta" so much. It's such a sweet song and I love how it binds all the labmems though space and time.


	3. Promise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know how the situation in the future of the SG will be, but I'm somewhat convinced that the relationships between the characters would remain the same, almost as if fated.  
> I loved Mayuri and Kagari's mother/daughter relationship, it warmed my heart, so I want them to be a family even in the SG worldline.
> 
> I guess though they're not the only ones I want to see as a family...

“Kagari-chan", Mayuri softly called, smiling at the small girl in front of her on the small sofa in the Lab. “I have wonderful news for you.”

The younger girl’s gaze suddenly lit up with a spark of curiosity. 

“Starting from today Mayushii will be your real mother”. Not able to contain her contentedness Mayuri’s gentle expression opened into a delighted smile.

Kagari’s blue eyes widened, shining with the pure and unrestrained joy of a child. “R-really?!”

“Yes", Mayuri replied, a fondness in her gaze that made her heart clench as she observed the scene in front of her eyes. “Are you happy?”

Without saying a word, Kagari jumped into her mother’s arms, holding Mayuri’s small frame with her tiny hands as if the elder woman was an anchor in the middle of a storm. Transparent tears glistened in her big cerulean eyes.

“Finally… I have found you, mommy…!”

Surprise was painted on Mayuri’s gentle features as she started crying softly, as if she wasn't sure of the reason why she was reacting that way.

“Yes, Kagari-chan. Mommy is here.”

She felt like that sight wasn’t something that their eyes were supposed to be privy to, so shifted her gaze to Rintarō, who was sitting next to her in the Development Room.

His amber eyes were already fixed on her.

Almost as if he could read her mind, he nodded, a warm smile spreading on his lips.

It was incredible how, as years passed, they had become able to understand each other with one look. Time was capable of consuming everything, but in their case, even after some years of marriage, it did nothing but strengthen that very same bond that defied the laws of the space-time continuum.

§ 

“I’m so happy for them”, she began as they walked under the cherry blossoms of the late spring day. “As much as it sounds unscientific, I think that they were somehow meant to be. I don’t have any specific memories about Kagari and Mayuri being a family, but it felt right seeing them together like that.”

A warm hand enveloped hers. She felt her lips curve spontaneously into a smile.

“I think you’re right. It’s very likely a consequence of Reading Steiner. If we want to put it ‘unscientifically’, we could say that feelings can cross time far more powerfully than memories”, Rintarō explained as he faced her, a mischievous glint in his gaze. “In the years that have passed I’ve matured the belief that some people are simply meant to be, just like us.”

“You’re such a sap”, she reprimanded, lightly smacking his arm. Even after years of being together he still managed to say things that made her blush like a teenager.

“Ouch. And you’re a demon as usual, Christina”, he teased with a fond grin. “But still, I really believe so. Some things won’t change, no matter what worldline we’re in.”

The wind softly whistled among the trees. The light of the sunset filtered through the branches, gleaming like golden stars on the railway tracks they were crossing.

“Hey, Rintarō.”

“Mh?”

A thin stream of pink petals bathed in the orange light of the afternoon, dancing in the sky above their heads.

“One day… I’d like us to be happy as a family, too.”

Bony fingers intertwined with hers. 

“It’s a promise, then.”

 

_"I'll always, always be by your side..."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I love Hoshi No Kanaderu Uta and I will never cease to repeat it.  
> And I'm a sucker for very established Okakuri, so this is kind of self-indulgent.  
> Forgive me for I have shipped.


	4. Drunk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had so much fun writing this. Whenever I imagine Okabe and Kurisu being drunk _together_ the weirdest shenanigans pop up in my mind. 
> 
> Maho will never admit it, but she was incredibly amused during this charade.

Hiyajō Mahō was at a loss for words. She could say that, despite their diversity, Makise Kurisu and Okabe Rintarō were her two dearest friends.  
The general idea for that evening was going out to eat something and celebrate the first time of them being all together in Tokyō. She really had tried her best to avoid the worst to happen, but, despite her efforts, she was forced to watch the disaster unfold in front of her very eyes.

A hand slammed on the wooden table of the inn’s room. Two giant glasses emptied of their contents lied on the surface, gleaming somewhat ominously under the light.

“Christiiina!”

“I told you there's no ‘tina’!”

“Be quiet, a mere Assistant has no right to debate the names chosen by this genial mind of mine!”

With a horrible presage, Maho saw Kurisu’s eyes glisten as tears suddenly threatened to fall. She knew that letting them order something alcoholic wasn’t a good idea, but she had committed the fatal error of trusting their sense of judgement.

“See? That's the problem! One day you tell me you love me and that you would sacrifice the world to be with me and then the other I’m just a mere assistant to you!”

“Guys, when I told you to openly discuss your feelings I didn't mean while drunk and in public”, she pointed out, trying to put a stop to that embarrassing charade.

A part of Maho wanted to congratulate herself for having had the thoughtful idea of booking a private room.

As much as she wouldn't admit it even under torture, she really was fond of both of them and really wished all the best for their relationship. She was in no way an expert about love, as she disliked something that hindered the common sense to the point of making someone act foolishly, but it was clear as a day that these two blockheads needed a long, nice talk.

Her words fell on deaf ears.

“ _I_ am the problem? I’d like to remind you, experiment-loving girl, that I have properly confessed and you’re the one who hasn't given me a proper answer!”

Kurisu let out a frustrated cry, pointing at her speaker in a blatantly accusatory manner.“How was I supposed to give you an answer when your behavior contradicts your words?”

“Ah! Says the perverted genius girl who stole my first kiss!”

The members of the Future Gadget Lab always insisted that Kurisu and Okabe-san had been basically dating without neither of them actually knowing. At the time she thought that that statement didn't make any sense. And yet, listening to their absurd shenanigans, she was forced to accept that no statement could better describe those idiots’ relationship.

She inhaled deeply before grabbing her still intact glass of beer and drinking a huge sip from it.

She slammed her hands on the table, finally obtaining the attention of her friends.

“Listen to me, you dimwits! I’ve had enough of this nonsense! Stop throwing non existent blames at each other and start to politely discuss as the adults you’re supposed to be.”

Okabe and Kurisu gave her a shocked look, before awkwardly clearing their voices. As two children being scolded for misbehaving, that pair abandoned themselves on their respective seats with a defeated sigh.

A heavy silence settled in. Neither of her friends was a person of action but what had remained of the effect of the alcohol seemed to loosen their usual restraint, because Kurisu spoke up first.

“Listen”, Kurisu began with a sigh. The spark of lucidity in her gaze infused some slight relief into Maho. “I guess my way of talking about the issue was exaggerated, but this doesn't erase the fact that I’m serious about what I said.”

Okabe straightened his back, crossing his arms on his chest with a somewhat conflicted look. “I guess I did exaggerate, too, Assistant.This Mad Scientist owes you an apology, as long as you don't get cocky.”

Kurisu opened her mouth in what Maho imagined was a tentative of protest against the nickname, closing it soon after. The blush on her cheeks slightly deepened.

“I’ve had enough of beating around the bush,you know?”, she said frowning, a pout already forming on her lips. “I’ll address the elephant in the room for that weird chuunibyou brain of yours just this once, so you better listen well and be thankful.”

It wasn’t like her younger colleague to be so straightforward about a personal matter, but Maho guessed that the effect of the beer both of her friends drank hadn’t completely subsided. As much as she was sure that discussing things as feelings under the effect of the alcohol wasn't a very healthy way of facing the problem, she had a hunch that it might have been good place to start.

It’s not like they were fun to watch or else.

The direct method, though, was already being quite effective as the young man sitting in front of Kurisu was looking at his speaker with a mix of curiosity and utter terror.

“The problem is that I can never have a serious talk with you. There’s always that crap about “the Organization” and Norse mythology, and you always call me names…”, she trailed off, her voice becoming somewhat wistful. “... I get the impression that what I say has no importance to you at all, sometimes.”

Okabe, still red faced, looked like he was falling from the clouds. His expression shifted into an unusually serious one, his golden irises fixed on Kurisu’s blue ones. Maho wished she had some popcorn to munch.

“Everything about you is important to me.”

_Strike one._

Mahō stifled a laughter at Okabe’s sappy retort, trying to maintain the composure that helped her avoiding a even more embarrassing situation.

“It’s… it’s really hard to believe you, given how your behavior is usually so childish” Despite the blatant redness on her cheeks Kurisu’s voice sounded incredibly serious.

Okabe grimaced, passing a hand over his face. 

“I guess I have my faults, not being able to vocalize how much you mean to me. I would be the Organization’s laughingstock were they to know about this.”

_Strike two._

“H-how much I…”

“Kurisu”. Okabe’s voice was stern, but bore an hint of warmness. Much to her chagrin, Maho had to admit that he looked rather cool when he acted like that. 

“I’ll say this once again. Everything about you is important to me, so much that I’d give my life for it.”

_Strike three. Batter out._

§

“It’s Hiyajō.”

“Tutturu, Maho-san!”

“Oh, Mayuri-chan. Do you need something?”

“Mayushii was a bit worried for Okarin and Kurisu-chan, since they aren't answering to their phones. Is everything okay?”

“I think it’s safe to say that all’s well that ends well.”

“Oh? Ah, it looks that Daru-kun wants to talk with you. Bye bye, Maho-san!”

“Hello, Maho-tan?”

“Ah, Hashida.”

“So?”

“Evacuate the Lab immediately.”

“How much time do I have?”

“I left them making out in a taxi 5 minutes ago.”

“YEET!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Discussing feelings while drunk is no good, obviously, that's why this story is some sort of prologue to what will happen in "Date". 
> 
> And I also sympathize with Daru. No reaction will ever beat his "YEET", really.
> 
> Drunk!Okabe is such a sap. Even sappier than usual. I love it. :')


	5. Scars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Onsen special!  
> Okay, not really, since the onsen is just a pretext. I wanted to interpret this prompt as both in the physical and psychological meaning of the word, so I hope I did a good job.

“I can’t believe we have the whole place to ourselves. It looks… expensive, to say the least.”

Bare feet padded on the wooden floor with a soft thumping sound. The pristine surface glistened under the warm lights of the changing room.

“Ku-nyan is right. Faris has heard of this place, nya. It’s a very ancient building that has been recently renovated into an exclusive onsen.”

“I see, I didn't think there was a similar place in Okinawa", Maho chimed in, gathering her dark unruly hair into a rough ponytail. “But still… what’s more incredible is that this is all free.”

Moeka tightened a fluffy-looking towel around her model-like body, her long wavy hair tightened in a bun. Kurisu couldn't help but feel a pang of envy. 

“Shiina-san… has been... very lucky.”

“I think ‘lucky’ is an understatement. Doing a rough calculation of the probabilities of a win this is something more akin to a miracle", Kurisu explained matter of factly. 

Just a week before, Mayuri had barged in the Future Gadget Laboratory with her usual fanfare, followed by an incredibly bright smile. The reason behind her overly cheerful attitude laid in the white envelope the girl had been flapping enthusiastically. It turned out that she had participated in the Akihabara’s Festival Lottery a few days before, winning an astounding first prize.

“An exclusive four day vacation in this place is something that only extremely wealthy people can afford, so we should properly thank Mayuri for sharing her prize with us".

“Speaking of Shiina-san", Maho began, a slight frown forming on her somewhat child-like features. “Where is she? I haven’t seen her since we had adjusted into our rooms.”

“Mayushii said that she and Ruka-nyan would go ahe-"

A terrified scream resonated in the room. 

“Mayuri-chan!”, Urushibara Luka’s voice exclaimed with an audibly agitated voice.

Silence.

Kurisu exchanged a quick worried look with her elder colleague and the rest of her friends.  
“It came… from the common bath.”

Without thinking twice Kurisu rushed towards the hotspring, slamming the sliding doors open. A deep fog caused by the steam enveloped the huge semi-open space. A circular bath framed by smooth round stones sat out in the cool evening air, under a star-dotted sky.

As soon as she took in the scene, the sound of heavy steps came from behind them, quickly growing louder. And then, in a rush of pale skin and white towels, Okabe Rintarō stormed past her, jumping into the warm water with a sickeningly worried look on his face.

“Mayuri!”

His voice echoed through the apparently empty space.

“Huh? Is there something wrong, Okarin?”

Without even the slightest hint of embarrassment for wearing only a towel in front of a member of the opposite sex, Shiina Mayuri, followed by Urushibara Luka, popped out of the mist, wearing a confused look on their faces.

“You were screaming before. Did something happen?”, she quickly asked the younger girl. 

Relief flooded within her the moment she saw Mayuri give an apologetic smile to the group. “Tehehe. Mayushii tried to get up too quickly and slipped on the floor.”

Before her eyes Okabe slumped on the floor with a loud sigh of relief. 

“We were worried that something had happened to Mayushii-nyan", Faris chimed in from behind her.

The expression on Mayuri’s childlike features shifted into one of genuine regret. “I’m really sorry, Okarin, everyone… Mayushii didn’t want to make you worry.” 

Kurisu sighed again, the tension left in her body finally subsiding. With the Lab Members, what was supposed to be a relaxing trip somewhat transformed into an adventure. What surprised her most, though, was that she didn’t think of that aspect as a nuisance but as something she was fond of. In a way it was confronting how the spirit of the Lab remained the same even when they weren't physically there. 

They all looked after each other, a bond that crossed worldlines uniting them as an unbreakable thread.

“Here it is! CG unlo- Huh? Okarin, what are you doing there? Don’t tell me you tried to peek into the girls’ bath without me!”

The voice of an oblivious Hashida interrupted her trail of thought. Okabe, still kneeled in the pool, gave his best friend a shocked glance. 

“Daru, it’s not what it seems, I can explain!”

It was in that moment that she realized how Okabe and Hashida were standing in a room of almost completely undressed girls. As the thought crossed her mind, she felt her cheeks heat up at the thought of Okabe seeing her in that state, her scrawny figure surrounded by the voluptuous curves of her friends’ bodies.

“You two”, she began, articulating each word with gritted teeth. 

The confusion on Okabe and Hashida’s faces quickly turned into utter terror.

“Get out of here immediately, you perverts!”

As Hashida rushed through the door screaming in fear, Okabe slowly got up, Mayuri and Ruka helping him out with an apologetic smile. 

It was then when she saw it. It started from the prominence of his last rib bordering his side and ended up slightly under the edge of the towel. A portion of long time healed scar tissue in the shape of an irregular line, thick skin in stark contrast with the rest of his abdomen.

As their gazes met for a split second the glint of guilt in his eyes confirmed her thoughts: it was the mark of his sufferings.

§

“...isu?”

“Chris-chan?”

Kurisu slightly jolted, shaking her head. As her gaze regained its focus, the worried faces of Mayuri and Maho appeared in front of her.

“Oh, sorry. You were saying?”

Mayuri’s gaze quickly saddened as the younger girl peeked right into her eyes. “Are you okay, Chris-chan? You’ve been acting weirdly these days. You aren't having fun?”

“Shiina-san is right. You’ve been spacing out a lot, lately. Is something the matter?” Maho, sitting on the futon next to hers, eyed her with a suspicious frown.

The situation was really getting out of her control. A part of her always knew that there had to be some sign that signified the reckless feat Okabe had managed to achieve, but her imagination alone hadn’t been able to fully grasp the entity of that wound. It looked far more serious than a simple stab wound from a switchblade. 

Something just didn't match with her memories and the fact that Okabe had never spoken about that scar did nothing but deepen her suspicions. She often got lost in her thoughts during these four days of holiday and, as much as she had fun, she felt like there was a sort of unspoken matter between her and Okabe.

“I’m fine, really. I had so much fun that I have no energy left”, she explained with an apologetic smile, playing absentmindedly with the sleeve of her yukata. “The hotsprings and the food here are so good that going back to Akiba tomorrow will be a real shame.”

Mayuri’s expression opened into a bright smile, the petite girl apparently convinced by her words. “You’re so right Chris-chan! But you know, Mayushii feels like she’d really start to miss the lab if we stayed longer”.

Kurisu found herself smiling back, the younger girl’s enthusiasm being infectious. 

“Yeah, you're right.”

§

_It was a dark, narrow hall. A man wearing a white lab coat laughed maniacally._

_The ominous gleam of a blade shone in the dimness of the place, aiming at her father._

_Excruciating pain._

_Cold._

_Fear._

_“Why did you do that?”, a faint warmth enveloped her body. It was strangely familiar and she abandoned herself to the hold of that stranger she felt so close to._

_His voice was broken, so pained that she felt like crying._

_A weak, strained smile spread on her lips. The man repeated her name like a mantra, his voice becoming more desperate with each second._

_“He’s still… my father.” ___

__§_ _

__The moon was shining brightly in the sky, its light so intense that it obscured the nearby stars.  
The garden was silent, the only audible noise being the quiet gurgle of the stream that filled the tub. A tiny veil of steam lifted from the hot water as she dipped her feet with a sigh. _ _

__Warmness spread through her limbs, partially washing away the coldness that had penetrated her body during her dream._ _

_“So this is what dying feels like, huh?”_

__She knew that what she had seen in her mind’s eye hadn’t been just a dream. She had experienced the sensation of being suspended between two different worlds so many times that she got used to recognizing memories from alternate worldlines.  
A part of her was aware of the fact that those very same images and sensations were the missing pieces of the riddle she’s been tormenting herself with during the previous four days._ _

__“I would have preferred you showing it to me more than discovering it on my own, you know.”_ _

__Okabe, sitting next to her on the bath’s edge let out a trembling sigh._ _

__“... sorry.”_ _

__“Don’t apologize, dummy", she chided, moving her feet in the warm water absentmindedly._ _

__Silence followed. For some reason she didn't feel like she would have been able to look at the man sitting beside her._ _

__“It’s frustrating”, she blurted out suddenly. “Because you’ve been reckless.You might as well loved the “me” from another worldline but that doesn't erase the fact that you almost died to save me.”_ _

__Okabe barricaded himself in a cryptic silence, not giving any sign of wanting to answer her words. He always behaved that way when it came to things that concerned a world that a different version of her experienced. Sometimes she wondered, despite everything, if his heart still longed for that Makise Kurisu, projecting his feelings onto her as if she was a replacement._ _

__“You know, I don’t think I’m worth someone risking their life for me. I was something akin to a stranger to you, back then, but you still took a knife in your stomach for me”. Her lips curved into a wry smile. “It’s selfish of me to think this but… it made me happy. Somehow it felt like my existence was important to someone.”_ _

__As she lifted her gaze she found Okabe staring at her with an unreadable expression. In that moment, wearing a yukata and unspoken emotions in his eyes, he almost looked like a different person, a version of Okabe Rintarō that she had never experienced. The person in front of her wasn’t just the weird 20-year-old self-proclaimed mad scientist or the young man that kissed her so tenderly in front of a burning sunset._ _

__“To me there’s no one more important than you.”_ _

__Her quivering eyes were reflected in his sad gaze. Their fates were intertwined as they both had experienced the estrangement and sorrow of being a drifter of time. That distance between them had no reason to exist and yet it was still there._ _

__That had to be reduced to zero._ _

__“I have something to ask you, and I want you to answer honestly. No beating around the bush.” Her lips pursed in a tight line. “Did you do it because you wanted to feel the same pain as me?”_ _

__Okabe’s eyes widened, a glint of sorrow in his amber irises._ _

__Her expression softened. “Aren't you a mad scientist? You should have predicted that I would have remembered sooner or later.”_ _

__His gaze shifted towards the moon with a sigh. “It’s just… I wanted you to both remember and not to. It happened in another worldline, but to me has been real. So much it still torments me, sometimes.”_ _

__Kurisu stretched her arms, pale skin peeking out from the sleeves of her yukata. Her hands reached for his face, turning his gaze towards her. “I’m not dead, I’m right here.” She opened into a soft smile, an hint of sadness pulling at the corners of her lips. “I’m here because _you_ saved me.”_ _

__Okabe looked at her with his mouth slightly agape for a few moments and Kurisu wondered if she looked or sounded weird as she spoke those words._ _

__A light chuckle prevented her thoughts to go haywire._ _

__“No matter the worldline, I really can’t compete with you", Okabe said, smiling fondly. “It’s more complicated than you’re imagining, probably. But I guess you’re at least partially right. Thinking about it as a way to atone for what I have done to you gave me the courage to go all the way. I just knew I had to do it.”_ _

__Kurisu let her hands fall at her sides just to start fiddling with the ends of her hair. She looked away, suddenly feeling embarrassed about her behavior._ _

__“Hey”, she called after a few moments of silence, her gaze lost in the gentle movements of the silver ripples on the water’s surface. “Can I… can I see it?”_ _

__Okabe inhaled sharply, letting out a shaky sigh. Her gaze met his, lingering for a long moment._ _

__“... Okay"._ _

__Warmness spread on her face as, with trembling hands, she lowered a shoulder of his simple blue yukata, baring half of his skinny torso.  
He averted his gaze, a faint redness on his cheeks. She expected some snarky comment about “how bold his perverted assistant is", but no words followed her gesture._ _

__It was exactly as she had seen it a few days before, a long irregular line that crossed half of his abdomen. Her fingers hesitantly hovered over the mark, asking for a silent permission._ _

__A bigger hand enveloped her wrist, warmness seeping through the fabric as it shyly guided her over the scar. Both their breaths halted for an instant the moment their skin touched._ _

__The scar tissue was slightly paler and thicker than the rest of his abdomen, with jagged edges in contrast with its smooth surface. Okabe probably had a lot to explain to her as time travel wasn't a taboo between them anymore. She knew that there was more to that scar than it was visible, something that left an indelible mark on both of them._ _

__The powerlessness of failing again and again, the sense of loss that accompanied the unavoidable disappearance of someone they loved. The physical and psychological pain they both experienced as victims and drifters of time._ _

__Before she knew it tears welled up her eyes. She hated it._ _

__“Kurisu…”, Okabe looked down at her with open concern, guilt seeping out from his tone. “Please, don’t cry. I…”_ _

__“I’m… I’m not crying!”, she protested, drying her tears with her free hand. She could almost hear Hashida saying “Nice tsundere line orz" in the distance._ _

__A chuckle escaped Okabe’s lips as his fingers took the place of her own on her lashes. “No matter how you look, at it you _are_ crying, Christina"._ _

__“There’s no ‘tina'", Kurisu chided with a smile as she lifted her head. A soft pulse thumped under her palm as her hand inadvertently shifted on his chest._ _

__She should have felt some degree of embarrassment but then Okabe’s lips softly kissed her eyelids. The sensation felt oddly familiar._ _

__“I didn't think you were so bold, Kurisu.”_ _

__An amused voice came from behind them. They exchanged a both terrified and embarrassed glance as they realized how equivocal the situation might have looked to an external eye._ _

__“I suspected something was up between you two but I didn’t imagine you were already this lovey-dovey"._ _

__Hiyajō Maho gave them a meaningful look, the smirk on her face widening. As if some kind of sudden and powerful repulsive force occurred between them, they let go of their loving embrace._ _

__Okabe shot up, his arms already forming Hōōin Kyōma’s trademark pose. “A Mad Scientist of my caliber can't possibly be l-l-lovey-dovey with his assistant!”_ _

__“I don’t ever recall being an assistant and, most of all, being yours!”, she huffed as she got out of the foot bath. “Let’s go, senpai. We don’t need to waste precious hours of sleep talking with this fool.”_ _

__“Yes, yes. You’re really made for each other, you know.”_ _

__“We’re not!”_ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, moonlit moments of tenderness. And good dose of tsun. I imagine this as something set a year after the movie or so, that's why our lovely dorks react in such a tsundere way to Maho's (very truthful) words.
> 
> This is a prompt that has been completely rewritten and I honestly like it more this way. It feels more personal, dunno.


	6. Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is without a doubt my favorite of all the prompts. I wanted to write something like this from a long time.   
> I've always thought that at some point Kurisu and Okabe must set aside their tsundere antics and talk in a completely honest way. Since Okabe has always been the one more prone to speak earnestly I wanted him to address the elefant in the room.
> 
> I guess this is how relationships work, right?

It was the worst date ever.

There had been a time, when they were just children with a fervent imagination, in which Mayuri told him that each person’s existence was bound to a star. 

He, Hōōin Kyōma, as the evil genius and mad scientist he was, was obviously born under an ill-fated one.

His was a lone struggle against the whole world, as the Organization had eyes and ears in every corner of the planet. And he was ready to bet that what was happening was their doing.

“Yes, it's me. Just as I suspected, the weather forecast on the NHK has been taken on by Their leader. Fret not, though. As I will protect my Assistant until the last sliver of strength leaves this body of mi-"

“Could you please stop talking to yourself at the phone and start running? Your lab coat is already drenched and I have no intention of ruining this yukata.”

A few centimeters away from his right arm, shrinking with him under the fleeting protection against the rain of his lab coat, Kurisu glared at him. 

“You should feel honored, Assistant. For I am sharing my sacred silver armor with you”, he replied in a overly theatrical way.

The petite girl at his side cocked an eyebrow, smirking. “Sacred silver armor? You have a long way to go to look like a knight… Hōōin-san.”

“The only title I accept is that of ‘mad scientist’, Christina.”

“Ugh, just how irritating can you…”.

A thunderclap roared in the dark grey sky, as if to nip their quarrel in the bug. The fierce and renovated intensity of the pouring rain soon replaced the rumble.

They were supposed to enjoy a festival together, that evening. But the weather turned its tables against them, catching them completely unprepared and several stations away from Akihabara. 

Okabe stopped dead in his tracks, gaining a questioning look from Kurisu. 

“Okabe? What’s wrong?”

He lowered his gaze to his speaker with a smile, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “It’s a shame that this yukata you look so good in must get ruined".

“What are you…?”

Lifting his coat from their heads, he swiftly slid his arms into its sleeves, the heavy feeling of the wet fabric already clinging to his body.

“H-hey!”

He didn’t know if that exclamation was out of surprise or anger or embarrassment. He was already running in the rain, taking a flabbergasted Kurisu by her delicate hand.

§

Millions of transparent drops were falling from above, cascading down from the wooden roof of the sanctuary hidden among the trees.

In the loud silence of the pouring rain their fatigued breaths echoed with fleeting delicacy.

Kurisu, her long chestnut hair wet but still tied into a braid, was looking at him, eyes unreadable. His lab coat hung heavy over his dark clothes and his hair sticked to his forehead.

He returned the gaze and, suddenly, as if there was a silent and reciprocal understanding, the rain was filled with the sound of their laughter.

“Just so you know it, that was a terrible way of escaping after making a compliment", Kurisu said, the smile still wide on her lips, as she turned her back to him.

Her yukata moved with her gesture. It was a simple pink one, with a red flowery pattern that matched the hair clip she was wearing on her braid. It struck him in that moment that Kurisu had probably dressed up for him.

“A mad scientist doesn’t run even in front of the most dangerous of the perils”.

“Yes, yes.”

“Though… it really does look good on you.”

A faint heat flooded his cheeks despite the cool air of that rainy evening. He thanked whatever god that was worshipped in this sanctuary for Kurisu not being able to see his face.

“...Thanks.”

Despite her apparently calm reply, under the dim light of the lamp hanging from one of the the corners of the roof, Kurisu’s ears were red, betraying her emotions.

Okabe sighed. He was planning to take the topic while watching the fireworks display at the festival, but he guessed it couldn’t be helped.

After all, this was also Steins Gate’s choice.

He turned his back to her small figure, taking in the dark shapes the trees painted on the already darkening sky. The sound of rain filled the silence, reminding him of distant moments full of both pain and love.

“Kurisu… I’m sorry for the other evening.”

“What’s with the sudden apology?”, was the surprised answer he got after a few moments. “It’s not like you.”

There was an imperceptible hint of worry in the way Kurisu spoke and Okabe found himself trying to resist the foolish urge to hold her. He had to maintain his composure, because he knew that he couldn't waste his chance. As things were in that moment he couldn't know what would be the next occasion in which he could openly speak with Kurisu.

“I have a lot of things to say, but please, just don’t turn around yet or… I’ll lose this little courage I’ve gathered".

He felt quite awkward in speaking so frankly, not to mention how he had just contradicted his previous statement about his lack of fear, but he was also aware that honesty could be the only thing to… clarify that situation.

That talk was something he should have brought up a long time ago, back when he had confessed to Kurisu in America. A few days before he had woken up on the floor of the lab with a splitting headache and Kurisu, still clad in her beautiful lolita dress, sleeping peacefully on the sofa. Flashes of their furious quarrel had flooded his mind with a nauseous sensation that somewhat reminded him of his Reading Steiner.

“I guess it was hypocritical of me to say that you weren't coherent with your actions when I’m the first one hiding behind feigned ignorance. So… I’m sorry.”

She wasn’t the only one feeling on edge thinking about how blurred the lines were of their relationship. As much as he loved Kurisu and repeatedly stated his feelings, he didn’t really act coherently with them.

In the end, when it came to her, he still was a coward.

Rain went on pouring from the sky, clear drops shining under the warm and faint light of the lamps. Velvet darkness slowly engulfed the surrounding landscape.

“It’s just…”, Okabe slowly exhaled, struggling to find the right words. “You’re just so… blindingly brilliant, to me. And not just for the fact that your first paper was published when you were only seventeen. Whenever I found myself with my back against the wall you were the one who always found a way to help me, believing my words and giving me the strength to not give up on Mayuri. Whenever I found myself lost among worldlines you were the one grounding me to reality. I would have been lost without you.”

Kurisu was silent behind his back. He wondered what kind of face she was making.

“There’s always been a reason behind my calling you names, something I didn't realize until I’ve been on the verge of losing you forever. ...geez, it’s so stupid that it’s awkward even thinking about it.”

“What… what was it?”

Kurisu’s voice was unexpectedly delicate, so gentle that it almost merged with the sound of the rain. 

Another sigh escaped his lips, his eyes closing. “... I was embarrassed.”

“Embarrassed?” 

“Yeah", he breathed, his words getting lost in a self deprecating chuckle. Around them was only darkness, enveloping them in their own little world. “How did some dimwit like me have the right to be on first name terms with someone so incredible? I’ve always admired you, and when I got to know you for who you really were… it became hopeless. You exploded in my heart and before long-”

The sound of a pair of wooden geta on the ground echoed in that lost dimension where they were the only inhabitants. A faint warmth spread through his back and small, thin fingers intertwined on his stomach. 

“Kurisu…?”

“D-don’t look!”, was the frantic answer he got as he hesitantly tried to turn around. Did he say something wrong? Was she angry for something he had mentioned in his speech? As thoughts chaotically swirled in his mind, Kurisu spoke again. “I have something I want to say as well. So, please, just… listen to me.”

Her voice sounded soft as the flapping of a butterfly’s wings and Okabe found himself gazing at the sky, tension and anticipation running through his veins with each beat of his heart. 

“I lived most of my life trying to fulfill the expectations people had on me. After being rejected from my father I focused every fiber of my being on my studies. But, with me being a woman - so young, even! - in the academic community, people looked down on me.”

Kurisu fell silent, her grip on Okabe’s waist tightening.

She was so petite, confronted with him and yet, those small shoulders had already withstood the burden of many painful moments. Always proud and strong, she hid her heart’s fragility, facing the world with her head held high.

“To be honest… I’m very thankful to you.”

Okabe felt his eyes widen as Kurisu suddenly spoke in an even smaller voice than before. The warmness of her embrace was comforting in the cool evening air.

“I don’t recall ever doing anything that needs to be thanked".

“You saved my life risking yours. And then… you gave me a place to belong to. Being with you and the others, spending my time at the Lab… I started to feel like I could finally be myself without worrying about people’s judgement.”

“Kurisu…”

A sigh escaped from the younger woman’s lips. 

“Listen. I… don’t hate Hōōin Kyōma. But watching you profess your love to me and then hide behind the “mad scientist” act filled me with doubt about your intentions. A part of me believed your words, but as a scientist I couldn’t act without any concrete proof.”

A smile stretched on his lips. Entrusting even her feelings to logic… that was so her. That was also a part of the Kurisu he loved so dearly. His hands reached hers on his stomach. Just like her they were thin and small, if compared to his.

“Okabe… please, don’t hide yourself behind a mask”, she went on. Her voice wavered, its fragility being a stab to his heart. “If something is bothering you just talk to me and we’ll face it together, just like we did in the Alpha worldline.”

“You…”, he began, an exasperated chuckle outpouring from his chest. With all the gentleness he could muster, he broke free from her hold, already missing the nostalgic feeling of warmth it gave him.

He was beyond hope.

As he turned around Kurisu jolted, surprise and embarrassment evident on her face. Even so, just like she did on a faraway worldline, she didn't run away from his gaze.

He took one of her hands in his, amazed at how it easily fit into his palm, almost as if it was meant to belong there.

“You really wish for me to go insane, huh?”, he finally asked in a slightly mocking tone.

“Nope", Kurisu replied as she shyly reciprocated his hold. “I just want you to rely on me a bit more.”

Okabe exhaled a long breath, his next words escaping his throat in a deeper tone. “What a bold statement, Kurisu. May I know what brought you to such a resolution?”

Her eyes widened for an instant as a lovely pink flush quickly spread on her cheeks. Kurisu shifted her gaze for a moment, their hands still connected in a tender hold. Finally, as suddenly as her eyes evaded his own, she looked up.

He found himself holding his breath.

“Well, I guess… I guess I wanted to be the strength of my most important person.”

The way she had spoken those words was shy and soft, baring in front his eyes that so kind and lovable side of her. It made weird things happen to his heartstrings. 

It was like really seeing her for the first time. Auburn locks framed her round face, the red on her cheeks a lovely contrast with her pale skin. Long dark eyelashes shadowed her azure irises, a world of unspoken but clear emotions swirling in them. Her lips, still wearing a hint of lipstick, were curved in a defenseless smile. 

He had never seen something so beautiful.

_This is bad…_

“Okabe? Are you…”

Before he could even think about what he was going to do, his limbs moved as if animated by some unknown force. In a single, delicate movement he brought her hand to his lips, placing a light kiss on her palm.

A plethora of incoherent words escaped Kurisu’s lips, her cheeks adorably reaching the color of the flower in her hair.

As he realized what he was doing he quickly let go of her hand, awkwardly clearing his voice. 

“Uh… S-sorry about that", he jabbered as he occupied his hand with his still wet hair.

“Ah, oh… I…”

Kurisu fiddled with her braid, her eyes shyly peeking at him.

“... I didn’t mind.”

Silence fell between them. Crickets sung in the distance, their voice the only audible sound in the quietness of the evening. A somewhat electric atmosphere hung heavy in the air, their eyes still locked into one another.

Gathering what was left of his courage, he decided to address the elephant in the room.

He brought his phone to his ear, ignoring Kurisu’s somewhat disappointed expression. “It’s me. What? I see, the appointed time has indeed come. Save your doubts for another time, for I will be victorious. Yes. El. Psy. Kongroo.”

“Kurisu!”, he called as he placed his phone back into the pocket of his lab coat.

“Y-yes?”

“From the heights of my boundless magnanimity I hereby offer you a promotion.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever you want, as long as you stop calling me names”, she casually dismissed him waving her hand. 

Straightening her back, Kurisu fixed her yukata. “Well, we should get go-"

“Be my girlfriend.”

She stopped dead in her tracks, slowly turning around to face him. A look of utter shock was painted on her delicate features.

“What?”

“You heard me", he punctuated, feigning a composure he didn't really possess. 

To be honest it was nerve wracking. He took Kurisu’s previous words as her roundabout way of accepting his confession, but maybe it was all a huge misunderstanding and she really didn't feel that way about him…

“I suppose only a fool would refuse a promotion”, Kurisu said finally breaking the tension. Although she was speaking in her matter-of-fact tone, he didn't miss the redness of her cheeks. “And someone must keep an eye on you and that weird mind of yours. Not to mention how the years of experience I have as your assistant logically suggest me as the most valid candidate…”

Relief and fondness invaded his heart the moment he realized how Kurisu’s rambling was just a poor attempt at hiding her embarrassment. Feeling like a huge weight was lifted from him, his legs finally gave in, his body bonelessly collapsing on the ground.

“Okabe?!”

Her voice bore a poorly concealed hint of worry as she quickly knelt before him. 

“Ah, sorry… It’s just… I was so relieved.”

Kurisu closed the space between them with a soft smile. “Dummy", she reprimanded bumping her forehead against his own. 

He loved her so much.

“Even great geniuses of my caliber can have a moment of weakness", he clarified, a corner of his lips lifting in a lopsided smile.

“So… I am your weakness?”, she mumbled, eyes already closing.

“Very much so.”

It was the best date ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess a part of me is really fond of their bickering and their awkwardness, but I totally felt like Okabe would offer her a "promotion" as a way to soften the bluntness of the typical "be my girlfriend" stuff (things have to be said clearly, you dorks)
> 
> They're both very, very weak for the other.


	7. Future

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I consider this a prologue to the first story of my other collection set in the SG worldline, the one about Daru's wedding.

_“Huh? Mayushii’s Pockety has stopped… How strange, she’s sure she has charged it a few days ago…”_

_On the old CRT a voice politely announces that all the train lines leading to Akihabara Station are temporarily out of order due to a bomb alarm._

_His heart floods over with uneasiness, a cold hand clenching around it._

_A group of western-looking men holding guns and rifles storms into the lab, aiming at them. The beat of his heart skyrockets, cold sweat dripping down his spine as he lifts his hands up._

_The distinct sound of a pair of heels. A black leather suit._

_The blood spilling from Mayuri’s innocent face. The smell of gunpowder. Her last fleeting word._

_“Oka… rin…”_

§

_The blade of a knife gleams ominously in the poorly lit hallway. Makise Shōichi shoots him a terrified glare, already pondering to escape._

_There’s no time to hesitate. He must save her. His most important person…_

_Then it happens._

_The blade sinks into something soft, but that exercises resistance against the cold piercing metal. The body resting bonelessly against his shoulder is Kurisu’s, her blood tainting his hands, his clothes, his soul._

_“I don’t... want to… die”, her voice feebly says as blood pours from those lips whose warmth he will never forget._

_He killed her. He killed her._

_An anguished scream akin to that of a dying beast tears the silence apart._

§

His eyes shot open, cold sweat dripping down his brow and his neck. As focus came back to his vision, the Lab’s ceiling appeared above him, the usual dark stain of humidity in the corner next to the Development room.

“Rintarō, are you alright?!”

A familiar voice called his name, worry seeping through its tone. 

Makise Kurisu, still wearing her labcoat, was kneeling beside the small sofa he was lying on, her clear irises quivering ever so slightly. 

“Kurisu? What…”

“You were sleeping and then you started screaming all of sudden…”, she interjected, answering his unspoken question.

Slowly, as if trying to calm his heartbeat, he sat up. As he ascertained that Kurisu was still alive, a question formed on his lips.

“... Mayuri?”

Kurisu smiled gently. “She went home a few hours ago, don’t you remember? You fell asleep while I was preparing for next week’s lecture.”

A sigh of relief left his chest. He was still in the Steins Gate worldline, a world that wasn’t affected by the attractor fields, a world where Mayuri and Kurisu were both alive and humanity wasn't doomed.

“Another nightmare, I suppose”, Kurisu said with a sigh as she sat next to him. 

He shot her an apologetic smile, not even bothering to hide the truth. “... Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you.”

Kurisu frowned slightly. “Stop apologizing, you dummy”, she chastised lightly smacking his shoulder. “You suffered a number of strong psychological traumas that left you with some evident signs of PTSD. It isn't something that goes away in a short span of time, especially given the length and the intensity of the facts you’ve been forced to witness.”

“Oh?”, he felt himself smiling, his voice automatically deepening of an octave. It was always awe striking the calmness she faced almost every situation with. “Is my assistant voicing concern for the likes of this mad scientist?”

Kurisu, much to his surprise, pouted, her cheeks reddening as she shifted her gaze towards the old CRT. “I-is that so bad? I mean, a couple of years ago I’ve experienced myself what it means to be an observer of time. It was unbearable and when I think about what you’ve been through I…”

“Geez, you’re such a tsundere", he found himself chuckling as he lightly squeezed her hand. Kurisu opened her mouth to object, but he swiftly continued his sentence. “But thank you, Kurisu.”

“Well… I mean… I don’t know what you’re thanking me for but… uhm, it was nothing, I guess”, she blurted out, shyness and confusion mixing on her pretty features.

“It was far from nothing.”

It came out more serious than he wished for and she noticed, he could see it from the way Kurisu’s piercing gaze focused on him. There was no trace of the annoyed glare she used to shoot him all the time back when they were only “acquaintances”, savior and saved.

“I would have disappeared from this world forever if you weren't there.You changed my past and you’re continuing to change my future with each day that passes. If there’s something that drifting across time has taught me, is the importance of having the power of writing our present with our own free will.”

“A world where the past is immutable and the future is nothing but a blank sheet, you told me once”, she interjected with a smile.

“Who needs the power to alter the past when everyone has the power to change the future every day of their lives? That’s why I want to let go of what I lived in the other worldlines without forgetting”.

His Reading Steiner was both a curse and a blessing. The power of remembering each of the worlds he drifted through, the power of remembering the fear, the pain, the love and letting them shape who he was in that moment. 

Kurisu spoke suddenly, as if remembering something. “‘Humans are temporal beings’.”

He smiled for a moment at the memory those words recalled, focusing once again on the woman in front of him, his present.

“Heidegger, huh? Though I was thinking something along the lines of ‘carpe diem’", he joked, adjusting himself on the sofa with a groan.  
He should think about buying something bigger for the peace of his creaking back.

“Horace, I see. But Okabe… are you really okay with these dreams? I can see why you’d want to focus on the present, but it doesn't erase the fact that reviving those moments is painful. I don’t even want to imagine the strain your brain is suffering.”

“A genius girl I know once told me that it’s the past that shapes who we are. But past, present and future are naught but relative concepts. Past is the only unchangeable thing in this world, if we exclude death. The future is unknown. So what matters is the present, because what we live in this moment makes us who we are as it becomes past and at the same time shapes our future”, he paused, giving a fond look to the woman in front of him. 

“W-what”, Kurisu blurted out, noticing his gaze.

He smiled, deciding to silently assign her the task of guessing what was going on his mind. He was an open book when it came to her, after all. “As time passes we all become different from who we were in the past, that’s why I’m sure these dreams will stop. They have already lessened dramatically from the R worldline accident, so you don’t have to worry more than this”.

Kurisu frowned, gazing at him with a slightly annoyed look. “I’ve already told that you can rely on me, so stop acting like a pretentious hipster.”

“Like the undying bird in my name I may fall, but I will always rise from my ashes”, he replied theatrically putting a hand against his heart. “Also, my dear assistant, did my supreme hearing fail me, or a while ago you called me by _that_ name?”

His heart flooded over with love as Kurisu flushed red, immediately avoiding his gaze. 

“It’s 3AM, time to go back to sleep, _mad silent test_ ”, she hurried to reply, already pushing him against the armrest. “Or do you wish for me to personally knock you out to be sure?”

She still had that habit of becoming something akin to an oni when she got flustered. It was something he found incredibly endearing. Not that he would actually voice that thought.

“Actually… I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep again", he replied earnestly, raising his hands in defeat. “Too much adrenaline, if you know what I mean.”

Kurisu blinked a couple of times, looking at him with a conflicted expression. What was she thinking about?

“It’s no good if you don’t sleep, you know", she said after a while, a weird expression on her face. “Tomorrow is an important day for you as well.”

The following day, Daru, his long time friend and “favorite right arm", was going to get married with Amane Yuki, a lovely cosplaying friend of Mayuri. It was somewhat relieving that some of the happy aspects of the future weren't lost even in Steins Gate. He was appointed as the best man and, despite not wanting to admit that, he was both proud and anxious for his best friend. A new story was about to begin, a step to an even brighter future.

_Future, huh?_

His thoughts flew to the ring hidden in the pocket of his lab coat.

“Here.”

Kurisu’s brisk tone interrupted the course of his ponderings. One of her thin hands gestured towards her lap.

He jolted up. 

“I’ll do something… to help you fall asleep.”

“W-what?!”

“D-d-don’t get any weird ideas and rest your head here before I change my mind, you idiot!”

His gaze shifted from Kurisu’s flustered expression to her lap for a few moments before, with all the delicacy he could muster, he complied to her “suggestion”.

“Close your eyes", Kurisu ordered briskly, forcing him to suppress the urge to grin at those words he was so fond of.

As he closed his eyes and the world was engulfed in darkness, a delicate hand started threading through his dark unruly hair. It was calming and comforting, just like everything in Kurisu.

“Searching for that one thing, the laughter of a star…”

A voice came from above. It was very quiet and sweet, with the gentleness of a mother singing her beloved child to sleep. He didn't know she had such a beautiful singing voice.

“Shining on in the wind…”

Despite his eyelids already feeling strangely heavy, he slightly opened his eyes, peeking at the singing woman.

Kurisu’s expression was filled with love.

He hadn’t really heard that song before but somehow it filled him with a nostalgic feeling.  
As he closed his eyes once again, the image of Kurisu holding a chestnut-haired baby with a smile fleeted through his mind.

“If you reach out you will grasp it for sure…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Asami Imai (Kurisu's VA) is a goddess and her singing voice is i n c r e d i b l e. So Kurisu must have a very good singing voice, as well, it's logical, right?
> 
> Our genius girl is very soft, no wonder Okabe is planning to ask her to marry him.
> 
> And yes, Hoshi No Kanaderu Uta. Again. It's not my fault it fits so well in these soft, sweet moments.


End file.
